The Night-Wear Before Christmas

As the nights draw in and there’s more grey than day, it’s easy to let your wardrobe become bleaker than midwinter itself. Many will find themselves thinking wishfully of long-gone summer days, not to mention summer dresses, that now seem a remote fantasy in the arctic tundra that is frost-bitten Manchester. However, as the festive season rushes towards us like a glitzy red, green and gold tidal wave, now is certainly not the time to to get SAD (sartorial affective disorder). Instead grab your black opaques and embrace the night and your winter wardrobe by espousing some of AW12/13’s favourite evening/party-wear trends. On the catwalk the frivolous pastel chiffons of SS12 were given a gothic revamp in sumptuously deep plums, burgundies and forest greens. Elsewhere there was velvet, that most luxurious of fabrics, in abundance and lashings of black lace. Prints were opulent jacquards, deluxe devores and resplendent baroques. Well after all, t’is the season to be decadent… On the accessories front there were throat-adorning chokers giving a beguiling gothic edge to the ‘90s trend that’s been going on a while now. All bewitching, but how to do this look on the high street in a way that’s Wednesday Addams and not wednesday-afternoon-school-girl-rebellion-gone-wrong? Well it seems Topshop has all the right, and rather witchy, answers.

This prom-style dress, £65, occupies the enigmatic space between lace and embroidery to magnificent effect, this shadowy showstopper is perfect for any party.

Or if you prefer a little more colour, sport the season’s favourite hue with this lavish skirt, £28, the red velvet a subtle nod to this month’s man of the moment.

These strikingly stompy ankle boots, £95, will add a kick to any outfit, not to mention keep those toes nice and toasty!

Finally, this luxurious choker, £35, is just crying out to be artfully layered over a black chiffon collar. So now there’s no excuse (sartorial, anyway) to spend the night hiding away beneath the bedcovers in your onesie, tempting though it may be. Instead baroque and roll into the night and all its beguiling midnight possibilities…